Dispensing holder for bottles or the like



Sept. 9, 1952 E. F. BUSHMAN DISPENSING HOLDER FOR BOTTLES OR THE LIKE T/E' Ur Zdwuz E fiualzrnan 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 Filed July 6. 1948 Sept. 9, 19 E. F. BUSHMAN DISPENSING HOLDER FOR BOTTLES OR THE LIKE Filed July .s, 1948 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Patented p 2 DISPENSING HOLDER FOR BOTTLES OR THE LIKE Edwin F. Bushman, Aurora, Ill.

Application July 6, 1948, Serial No. 37,264

4. Claims.

1 My invention relates to a handle construction and more particularly to a dispensing holder for receptacles such as bottles.

It is customary when pouring liquid from a bottle to grasp the bottle at the neck, around the body, or both. This is not always very easily managed, depending on the size of the bottle and the weight of the bottle and its contents. Quite frequently there results spillage of the contents when pouring and breakage of the receptacles into which the contents are being poured.

One of the objects of this invention, then, is the provision of a holder for bottles or the like for facilitating pouring the contents therefrom.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a device of the character referred to which may readily and easily be attached to and removed from a container.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a holder for containers which is of light construction, capable of withstanding hard usage, and has an attractive appearance.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a handle or holder for containers such as bottles or the like which is simple in construction, economical to manufacture, convenient in use; and highly efficient in operation.

Other andfurther objects of the invention will become, apparent ;to those skilled in the art from the followingdetailed description of the preferred embodiments oftheinvention as disclosed in the annexed sheets, of drawings.

On the drawingsr i Figure 1 is a side view. in elevation of a holder which is constructed-inaccordance. with this-invention and shown installed on a bottle, indicated in dotted lines, with the holder and bottle in a pouring position;

Figure 2 is a view-of the holder parts or sections when in a fully opened and disconnected position, illustrating the internal ribbing thereof;

Figure 3 is a top viewin elevationof the holder device when in a fully closed and locked position;

Figure 4 isa fragmentary front view of the holder showing the hinge arrangement'connecting the halves or sections; i

Figure 5 is an enlarged top elevational View of the spring lock device shown inoperative positions in Figures3and 7; Figure 6 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of Figure 2;

Figure 7 is an? enlarged fragmentary -vertical cross-sectional view taken along the line VIIVII of Figure 3'and illustrating, in full lines;

the holder halves or sections secured together 2 by the spring lock device and, in dotted lines, the holder halves unlocked when the spring lock device is moved to a position in full registry with an opening through which the lock is drawn;

Figure 8 is a view, similar to Figure 1., of another embodiment of this invention illustrating a bottle holder formed of flexible material to eliminate the hinge;

Figure 9 is a view illustrating how the bifurcated holder of Figure 8 is held by hand and opened for installation on a bottle;

Figure 10 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view taken along the line XX of Figure 8 and illustrating the square shape of material of which the holder is constructed; 7

Figure 11 is a view, similar to Figure 1.0, illustrating a half-round cross-sectional shape for material out of which the holder may be constructed; and,

Figure 12 is a view, similar to Figures 10 and 11, illustrating a full round cross-sectional shape for material out of which the holder of this invention may be made.

As shown on the drawings:

In Figure 1 through 7 there is shown a split or bifurcated holder for a particular type of bottle. This holder II] is of a mated, two-piece construction, having C-shaped portions Illa and lb each of which has a curved handle at one end thereof, such as H and I2. The C-shaped portions are connected by a hinge construction [3. As best shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4, adjacent ends of the bottle-neck engaging portions Illa and lflb of the holder sections are shaped to provide a male hinge part [4 and-a. female part l5 connected by a pin I6. The handles are provided with indentations or finger seats I1, I! whereby the better to grip the holder.

A better grip or grasping of the bottle will be effected when the inside surface of the neck engaging portions of the holder are shaped to complementally engage the bottle neck. This also insures that the bottle will not slip forward when tilted to a pouring position. The bottle I8, shown in dotted lines in Figure 1, has a restricted neck section l9 and a loop 20 through which to insert a finger to carry the bottle.

Thecontainer grasping portions have ridges 2| and 22 which together form an annular ring, as shown in Figure 3, to seat in the restricted neck of the bottle. In addition, the junction between each neck engaging portion, Illa and lllb, and the connected handles, H and [2, has a shoulder or is enlarged, as at 23 and 24. In each enlargement or shoulder is a curved slot, as at and 26. The curved slots form lugs 21 and 28 which extend through the finger loop on the bottle and nearly into abutment thereby effecting an embrasure or socket for a part of the finger loop. With this construction the holder closely embraces the bottle neck and is anchored against turning around the neck.

The handles extend toward the bottom end of the bottle and terminate preferably on or beyond a line G-G which passes through the center of gravity. This effects ease in pouring the contents from the bottle.

With the holder installed as shown in Figure 1, it is desirable that means be provided to lock'the mated parts in place. An opening 29 extends through one of the handles at an intermediate location. A spring lock member 30 is attached to the other handle in vertical alignment with the opening 28 when the handles are in closed or side by side position.

The lock member 1 B is formed of spring metal and is shaped as best seen in Figures 5 and '7 with a right-angular securing flange 3| at one end an a' V-shapcd portion 32 at the other end. A recess 33, in the handle l2, receives therein the flange 3i and is secured in place by means of a fastening member, such as a rivet 3d. The lock member 39 is so positioned, when the handles are together in closed position, that the intermediate flat portion 35 rests on the bottom of the opening 29. In this position, the right-angular part of the ll-shaped end 32 rests against the outside face of the handle i I thereby holding the two handles locked together.

When a holder is to be applied'to a bottle, the

handles are pivoted around the pin it to an opened position, the neck engaging portions are applied to the neck of the bottle, and the handles are moved to closed position in which they are in side byside engagement. As the handle I2 is moved toward the handle H, the outer sloping face 36 of the v-shaped end 32 of the lock member 30 engages the sloping and rounded corner 31 on the handle I l and slidesupwardly and into the opening 29. As the handles continue to move toward each other the V-shaped end 32 slides along the lower surface of the opening 29 until it reaches the outer face of the handle H. The resiliency of the lock member then snaps the V-shaped end 32 downwardly in which position the inside face 38 bears against the outer face of the handle H and the handles are looked as shown in full lines in Figure 5. The distance on the lock member between the face 3-8 of the V- shaped end and the adjacent face on the flange 3| is slightly greater than the width of the handle ll. This permits the lock member to bridge. the width of the handle i i and thereby lock it to the handle 12.

To unlock the handles whereby to remove the holder from a bottle, the operator need only apply thumb pressure against the sloping surface 2-6 to raise the V-shaped end of the lock member to a positionshown in dotted lines in Figure 7. In this position, the end'32is in; alignment with the opening 29 and may be drawn therethrough as the handles are moved away from each other.

In order toeffect and maintain alignment of the handles when in a closed position, dowel pins are'provided each to lit into a hole in the opposite handle. As shown, the handle I i includes a pin 39 and a hole ii! so located respectively as to cooperate with a hole ii and a pin :22 in the handle i 2.

The halves or sections of the holder shown may 4 be made of any suitable material, such as wood, metal, or the like, offering sufficient strength and rigidity to perform as a dispensing holder for heavy containers such as liquid-filled bottles. They may be shaped by casting, molding, machining or the like. It is preferred, however, to fabricate them of a formable material, such as a thermoplastic material, by casting or molding. When so formed, the handles are either cast solid or with hollow sections. When cast hollow as shown in Figure 2, strength is maintained by means of ribbing, identified generally as at i? and 45.

Another embodiment of my invention is shown in Figures 8, 9 and 10. The bifurcated holder de vice is fabricated from a single piece of forrnable material, preferably thermoplastic material. It is desired that it be flexible for a purpose to be explained hereinafter. As shown in Figure 10, the material is square in cross-section. It is formed under heat into the shape shown in Figure 9 in which there is provided an open loop 46 with the ends extending generally radially and axially to form handles 41 and 48.

The loop is shaped to receive the neck 49 of an elongated bottle 50. A bottle different from that shown in Figure 1 is illustrated only for the purpose of showing that the dispensingholders of this invention are adapted to various shapes of containers. Handles 4? and 38 curve away from the loop and terminate, as in the case of the previously described holder, not shorter than on a 1ine G'--G which passes through the center of gravity as shown similarly in Figure l. The loop Q6 is slightly larger than the neck 49 of the bottle but smaller than in diameter than an annular ring orshoulder 5| which is provided on most bottles between the screw threads 52 for accommodating a closure and an enlargement of the neck towards the body. This construction limits movement of the bottle in an endwise clirection relative to the holder, especially when liquid contents are being poured from the tilted bottle. The bottle is, however, free to rotate in the holder which is not the case with the holder shown in Figure 1.

As shown in Figure 9, the holder is installed on a bottle by'fiexing the handles apart sufficiently to permit the top of the bottle with its threads and annular shoulder to pass through the loop.

Release of the handles permits the inherent resiliency in the loop to return the handles into engagement which closes the holder. The flexing in the loop, when the handles are forced apart, occurs along the forward portion thereof. There is considerably more resistance to flexing in the handle when a liquid-filled bottle is held thereby because the handle includes two thicknesses of material while the loop has but one. Removal of the holder from a bottle is accomplished by reversal of the above procedure.

Figures 11 and 12 show modified cross-sectional forms of the holder device. Half round sections. as at 53 and, or full round sections, as at 55 and 56, may be employed.

Although the material forming the holder in Figure 8 is shown as being solid, it may be cast hollow and ribbed in the same manner as shown in Figure 2.

The invention has been described herein more or less precisely as to'details. yet it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereby, as changes may be made in the arrangement and proportion of parts, and equivalents may be substituted, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a holder for a bottle or the like having a finger engaging loop, said holder having bottle engaging portions or jaws arranged to be moved toward and away from each other to grip a bottle or the like therebetween or release same therefrom, the improvements comprising handles extending from said jaws and movable toward and away from each other to close and open said jaws, and slots in said handles cooperating when the handles are together to form a socket for embracing part of said finger engaging loo-p thereby to anchor the holder against rotation on the bottle.

2. In a holder fora bottle or the like having a finger engaging loop with the holder having bottle engaging portions or jaws arranged to be moved toward and away from each other to grip a bottle or the like therebetween or release same therefrom, the improvements comprising hollow handles extending from said jaws and movable toward and away from each other to grip a bottle or the like therebetween or release same therefrom, strengthening ribs in said hollow handles, an opening in one of said handles, a resilient latch member carried by the other of said handles and arranged to extend through said opening to releasably hold the handles together, and slots in said handles cooperating when the handles are together to form a socket for embracing part of said finger engaging loop thereby to anchor the holder against rotation on the bottle.

3. In a holder for a bottle or the like having a projection thereon, said holder having bottle engaging portions or laws arranged to be moved toward and away from each other to releasably grip the bottle adjacent said projection, the improvements comprising handles extending from said jaws for moving them toward and away from each other to closed and opened positions, and a socket in said holder for embracing a portion of said projection thereby to anchor the holder against rotation on the bottle.

4. In a holder for a bottle or the like having a linger engaging loop, said holder having bottle engaging portions or jaws arranged to be moved toward and away from each other to releasably grip the bottle, the improvements comprising handles extending from said jaws for moving them toward and away from each other, said handles being longitudinally curved to extend in a direction generally lengthwise of said bottle, the length of the handles being such as to extend from the jaws beyond a line passing radially of and through the center of gravity of the bottle when tilted to a pouring position, and a socket in said holder for embracing a portion of said finger engaging loop thereby to anchor the holder against rotation on the bottle.

EDWIN F. BUSHMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 679,742 Goddard Aug. 6, 1901 1,730,820 Holden Oct. 8, 1929 1,735,502 Harris Nov. 12, 1929 1,953,238 Kosanovich Apr. 3, 1934 1,994,415 Edwards et al Mar. 12, 1935 2,055,854 Stibbe Sept. 29, 1936 2,065,803 Grenier Dec. 29, 1936 2,070,367 Mackilbank Feb. 9, 1937 2,231,222 Rosenheimer Feb. 11, 1941 2,417,335 Westby Mar. 11, 1947 

